Dr. King's Personal Driver Gives Us A View Through His Eyes

Tom Houck, who was once Dr. King's personal driver, is now giving tourists and locals and up front view of Atlanta's history through his eyes and the time he spent with the Civil Rights leader in the 60s.

Toyota Supports The King Holiday Donating $50,000 To Black Colleges

In honor of the life and vision of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Toyota Financial Services (TFS) announced today that it has made a donation totaling $50,000 to five Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs).
 
The five recipients of a $10,000 TFS donation, Bowie State University, Saint George’s County, Maryland; Delaware State University, Dover, Delaware; Howard University, Washington, D.C.; Morehouse College, Atlanta, Georgia; and Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland all provide exceptional educational opportunities within many of the communities in which TFS operates. 
 

Dr. King's Holiday

The editor, Jeff Fortson, standing in front of the The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial on The National Mall in Washington, D.C.

What are you doing today to honor Dr. King's legacy? Is it just another day? Is a day to take a moment to participate in a volunteer activity? Is it a day to take a moment to watch a program, commemorating the life and legacy of the man? Where will would America be today without a visionary like Dr. King and others? 

Spike Lee And Chevy Are Committed to Honoring Dr. King's Dream

This commerical, which was created by Spike DDB, Chevy's African American ad agency, illustrates Americans from all walks of life taking their seats at an endless table weaving its way through beaches, schools, streets and restaurants to Washington, D.C.  

As many of you probably know, on August 28 the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial in Washington, D.C. will be unveiled. It will be the first memorial on the National Mall to honor someone other than a U.S. President. The dedication will mark the 48th anniversary of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.  Film director Spike Lee's advertising agency, Spike DDB, is working hand-in-hand with Chevrolet to help commemorate this historic event. Ironically, both Lee and Dr. King are alums of Morehouse College, the Atlanta-based all-male historically black college.

Also to help commemorate the event, Chevrolet is sponsoring the “Table of Brotherhood Project,” a four-city tour honoring the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. The tour is scheduled to make stops in Atlanta, Memphis, Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Tour stops will feature a table designed by Scott Tucker of Raunjiba furniture, where people of all backgrounds and opinions are invited to participate in culturally and socially relevant conversations around King’s vision. The discussions will be moderated by news journalist and commentator Roland Martin.

To learn more about the tour dates and to find out details on how you can win a trip to D.C. to be apart of this historic event on August 28, click here.

M. L. King's Memorial: Four Socially-Conscious Automakers Fund the Dream

With the world taking a moment this week to reflect upon the 82nd birthday of Dr. King, we wanted to take a few moments to discuss the latest world leader to join the the National Mall of Washington. As many of us know, Dr. King fought for racial inequality for everyone. Also the change agent wanted us to be socially-conscious, too, investing in companies that provide social benefits and support you and your community.
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In August, Dr. King will become the first African American and the first person that's a non president who will be commemorated on the National Mall in Washington via a statue. (President Obama will more than likely become the next African American to be honored a few decades from now).

This $120 million investment will draw visitors from all over the world. Just in case you want to know which automakers have stepped up to the plate to assist in funding Dr. King's new Memorial, here's what we dug up. Ford, GM, Honda and Toyota are the only automakers that would be considered as being socially- conscious and major contributors as it relates to helping to fund this historic dream, according to M. L. King Memorial's website. Will this affect your next car purchase or will you still continue to support companies based on image, style and/or price? What would Dr. King recommend you drive if he were alive today? Better yet, what would Dr. King drive - if he were alive today. Would he be driving a Mercedes, a BMW, a Lexus, a Cadillac?  Remember Dr. King was a man of modest means. Just of what we know of him, we can only assume he probably would own a Ford Taurus, Chevy Malibu, Honda Accord or Toyota Camry. We'll continue to explore this discussion later if minority consumers should become more proactive in what they drive.

For now, to find out other ways to support Dr. King's Memorial, click here. And to view CBS news anchor Russ Mitchell highly informative news video revealing the latest construction updates about King's latest dream, click here.

If Dr. King Were Alive Today, What Would He Drive?

As we focus our attention on Dr. King this month, have you ever wondered what he would have driven if he were around today? According to Tom Houck, who was King's personal driver and assistant, he was responsible for his transportation needs.

We do know if Jesus, another great leader, were still alive today, he would probably be cruising around the world in a Dodge Caravan, with the new swivel seats and built-in picnic table. Knowing Jesus, he would have been ministering at every bus stop, holding Bible study in his Caravan, according to young Biblical scholars attending a local Sunday school class in Atlanta.

Like most southern Baptist ministers of King's day, who tooled around town in the seventies, eighties and nineties driving "preacher cars"- Cadillac's DeVille, Lincoln's Town Car and Chrysler's Fifth Avenue - he probably would have driven one of the domestic land yachts, too. Unlike most ministers, since King was so frugal, he probably would have owned a Ford Crown Victoria or Buick LeSabre, the "working man's car."

As we entered into the new millennium, King would have been forced to transition into a new ride, since many of the big domestic road runners of the past no longer are being built today. With the exception of Dr. Joesph Lowery, president emeritus of the SCLC, now in his eighties, who is still driving a stylish Cadillac sedan, most ministers have traded their domestic makes for Mercedes' S-Class, BMW's 7-Series and Land Rover's Range Rover. And a few of today's preachers are still loyal to driving the domestic-based vehicles like Lowery; however, they're driving glitzy SUVs - Cadillac's Escalade and Lincoln's Navigator.

Now if you happen to be in same league as prosperity minister Creflo Dollar, you can drive around in a $280,000 Rolls Royce. According to Dollar's recent interview on ABC's Nightline News, his congregation rewarded him with the Rolls, each of the 28,000 members donated $20. Dollar also said during the interview, he recently sold the pricey car, giving the proceeds to a children's ministry.

If King were alive today, would he have accepted a Rolls from his flock? I seriously doubt it! Knowing King, who was the same person that took his $56,000 in earnings from the Nobel Peace Prize, giving it away to the civil rights organizations, he would have never accepted such a gift. Although Dollar recently turned over the keys to the Rolls, he continues to hold on to the church-owned private jet, ministering to his transcontinental flock. ( Dollar told Nightline his decision to relinquish the Rolls was in place prior to the Senate's random investigation of several mega ministries.)

If King were alive today, it's hard to believe he would have been as flamboyant as many of today's spiritual leaders. If he were alive today, he would have been driving a hybrid or taking public transportation, showing us his concern for preserving the environment. Or King could possibly be driving a Mercedes-Benz on loan from the dealership former mayor Andrew Young has owner-equity in within the Atlanta area. (Young was apart of King's inner-circle.)

As we take time to remember Dr. King, continue to honor and celebrate his legacy. Just wondering: Have some of our spiritual leaders embraced King's philosophy of equality, inclusion and economic freedom or has it been misinterpreted like the Bible scriptures for their personal interests? Also I am surprised there aren't any dealers or automakers having a "King Holiday Sale?" I guess in this day of being politically-correct that wouldn't go over to well.

Share your thoughts. What do you think King would say about the transportation choices of today's spiritual leaders?